##VIDEO ID:UxmluIF62x0## [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] e [Music] [Music] [Music] n [Music] sh [Music] [Music] [Music] pursuing to the open public meetings act at public notice has been given by the secretary of the eim Township Board of Education in the following manner posting written notice on the official bulletin board of the Board of Education Office emailing written notice of the brones and County Times And The Courier Post filing written notice with the municipal clerk of eim Township Mr Yates can we have a roll call please roll call Mr Bach here Mr Brown here Mr demarcy Mr demarcy is absent Miss Fox here Mrs null here Miss Lee here Mr Thompson Mr Thompson is absent Mr fisicaro here and Mr K here we have a quarum thank you Mr Yates whereas an njsa 10 for das2 allows for a public body to go into close session during a public meeting and whereas the Board of Education of eam Township has deemed it necessary to go into close session to discuss certain matters which are Exempted from the public and whereas the regular meeting of the Board of Education will reconvene following the end of close session at approximately 7:30 p.m. now therefore be it resolved that the Board of Education will go into Clos session for the following reasons as outlined in njsa 104 12 items 2.2 through 2.4 do we have a motion to go into Clos session motion by Mr Brown seconded by Miss Lee Mr y's roll call please on Executive session Mr Bach yes Mr Brown yes Miss Fox yes Mrs null yes Miss Lee yes Mr FIS Caro yes Mr conon yes that motion carries thankes we'll see you back at approximately 7:30 p.m. [Music] e [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] for sh sh sh [Music] [Music] for he [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] a for [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] e e [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] sh sh sh [Music] [Music] e for [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] e [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] e [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] e [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] sh sh sh e but all those who are able please rise for the pledge indice thank you and reading our mission statement tonight will be board member Mrs null no worries for okay sorry about that I had to log on the mission of the eam Township School District is to promote excellence in an environment that engages students in meaningful learning experiences in partnership with students dedicated staff families and Community the district provides a strong educ ational Foundation that will Empower our students to achieve their unique potential Embrace self-directed lifelong learning develop the skills necessary for appropriate risk-taking and responsible decision making respect themselves and others problem solve individually and collaboratively and become contributing members of a diverse Global Society thank you Mrs I'll now hand the floor over to Dr Smith for some presentations thank you Mr canthon so we before we getting into uh the agenda tonight it is the last board meeting for two of our board members Jam Lee and Joe fizic Caro and we wanted to take a moment as a board to recognize them um for their very riable service and I just want to start with M Lee so if you don't mind like kind of walking her I know you love Limelight and uh I'm gonna have Mr canthon and Mr fysiko join me for a second um so M Lee has served on the board for the last three years she's currently on the policy and Personnel committees and unofficially we don't keep official records of this but I want to say unofficially has probably logged more miles to get to etsd board meetings than any board member in the history of the district and prob you know covering from like Delaware and DC through snow rain all kinds of weather um and I you know I feel like I just always felt like you're action of valuing and and emphasizing the importance of being here and being present and fulfilling your role in that way spoke volumes about how much it means to be on the board and how much it meant to you and how much it's meant to us to have you on the board you've got a tremendously bright future ahead of you we're so excited for you and um just on behalf of all of us thank you so much for your time [Applause] um so I remember meeting Jamie when she was first running for the board I had coffee with her um and she was asking questions that I didn't even know her questions until like I was a board member for already like a year um there has never been a board member I think whose ratio of knowledge to speaking is so high um so every word you said carries an infinite amount of weight um but yeah where where your career takes you I think that the fact that you knew more than most board members who have served for years before you even got out on the board speaks volume so look forward to seeing where you're going to go all right uh and our second board member whose last meeting is tonight doesn't have to walk Joe physico and I just um I had to like to get the dates right in the plaque for him took like lots of research because there he's been on the for for so many years and this may again un unofficially slash maybe more officially this may be a record um 2003 2009 then a little sabatical back in yeah getting married something in the middle there right and then back in 2012 to 2024 to to today um the uh I just think of all of the chapters in those years that you've helped to guide our district through um you've opened windows for me into those some of those chapters as how we can learn from the past to chart for the future and that's just been invaluable um I feel privileged to you were the president of the board when I came on you're vice president now to have known you as a board member as a colleague as an etsd parent and as a friend I I'm feel honored and privileged and just um on behalf of all of us Joe thanks for actually gratitude for for everything you've given um and we look forward given and will continue to give because the next chapter still involves the theme which of helping our great Community become even greater you're going to be on Town Council and um so proud of you in that way too because it's like just you're going to be making a difference in just um in another venue but with us in mind yeah so plaque yeah and for those I don't know if Town Council meetings go as late as uh atsd board meetings but coffee for the yeah y yep yep and uh I think in the universe of my life there is no one I've spent more time on the phone with than Joe fisicaro um I remember when I first came on the board I we had a standing call every day at 4:30 where I would ask him a million questions um and never once through all that did he get mad at me for asking a million and five stupid questions and I see both his daughters here today I heard him parenting while he's on the phone with me every week um and there's no Testament to service the fact that he's willing to talk to every board member the way he was able to talk to me and still be a great father a great husband a great son um and see his dad here too um yeah no I I've learned more from from Fizz than I think anyone in my time on the board um and I'm not good at uh these long speeches but I I'll just say that there's yeah there's there's no one I learn more from and and I'm privileged just not to know you as a board member but also as my friend so thanks man all right all right we're going to move into public comment uh this meeting will now be open to the public referencing agenda items only however if your questions or comments pertain to litigation student or Personnel items we ask that you see the superintendent after the meeting since we do not discuss these matters in public please limit your comments to three minutes per person is there anyone who would like to speak on agenda items seeing none we will now move move into a consent agenda today so we need a motion to approve item 6 7 8 9 and 10 so do we have a motion to approve items 6 through 10 motion by Mr physic because he wants to get out of here seconded by uh Miss Fox any questions or comments from the board before we vote I'll hand the floor over to Dr Smith real quick do you have anything just just real quick uh just want to recognize our many students students this past two weeks who performed in The Amazing winter concerts both during the school day and in the evenings uh their talents are incredible and made even more so by our amazing music teachers thank you as well for helping prepare those students for um for those opportunities uh got to attend vanzant's fifth grade student council inauguration last week uh the students gave speeches about why they ran for student council and uh thank their families and friends for supporting them in their in their um campaigns uh take that opportunity to thank all of our staff both in the formal opportunities for leadership like that example but in all the opportunities for leadership within classroom roles safeties um across all of our schools um and all those tie IND directly to our social studies curriculum little reminder for families there is still a survey in the Gen is Parent Portal where you can vote on uh drafts of our 2025 2026 District calendar thanks for considering doing that deadline is January 3rd and uh as this is the last board meeting of 2024 just want to wish our families and staff a wonderful winter break and rest so we can come back rejuvenated for 2025 thank you Mr canthon thank you Dr Smith any questions or comments from the board seeing none Mr Yates roll call please on consent for the agenda Mr boach yes Mr Brown yes Mr Demar yes Miss Fox abstain from six yes to the rest your abstention from item six is noted yes to the rest thank you Mrs null yes Miss Lee yes but abstain to 10.6 um for a family your abstention to 10.6 is noted yes the rest thank you Mr Thompson yes Mr fisicaro yes and Mr Conan yes motion carries thank you Mr Yates moving to item 11 policy we have no policy moving to item 12 committee reports are there any committee chairs who would like to share a report seeing none old business we have no old business new business we have no new business that's not there right yeah that's okay we have no new business no no new business okay uh we'll now move to open public comment for any items this meeting will now be open to the public referencing any items of Interest however if your questions or comments pertain to litigation student or Personnel items or negotiations we would ask that you see the superintendent after the meeting since we do not discuss these matters in public please limit your comments to three minutes per person and everyone my big timer is not here tonight so I'll just be keeping track on my phone good evening I'm here tonight on behalf of the isim Township School District parents for improved literacy outcomes our advocacy group has expanded to 474 members and for over a year we have invested significant time collaborating with national reading advocacy groups New Jersey advocacy groups and state legislators our Ono efforts focus on promoting the adoption of effective literacy practices within Isam Township School District specifically we are advocating for a more structured literacy approach across all language arts disciplines while some modifications were made to isam's ELA curriculum over the summer administrative leaders remain committed to outdated practices ineffective resources and insufficient tier one interventions a notable concern is the continued use of outdated reading materials such as books published in 1992 in 2024 it is perplexing that students are bringing home such outdated text to read access to decodable readers is essential for students to practice and apply phonic skills in a manner that aligns with their developmental needs the Reliance on leveled readers from fontis panel which often present overly challenging word patterns raises further concerns about the curriculum's effectiveness furthermore the Fontanel comprehensive phonic spelling and word study program utilized by eim includes 100 lessons based on specific principles as a parent of two kindergarteners and a second grader I am still unclear as to what principles are being explicitly taught it is crucial that assessments for each principle are mandatory and that consistent progress monitoring is communicated to all parents across all grade levels and all schools additionally esm's Reliance on the font and panel Benchmark raises concerns regarding whether the second Ed Edition is still in use or if all teachers have transitioned to the updated Third Edition as the Fontanel website emphasizes the importance of not comingling different additions within the same school as of last year the percentage of students with disabilities in eam stands at 25.9% which is notably higher than a state average of 15.9% this discrepancy prompts questions regarding the effectiveness of our language arts curriculum in addressing the diverse needs of all students it is essential to consider whether our current educational strategies are adequately supporting these Learners you can't tier two your way out of in inadequate tier one there is a pressing need to invest in proactive and effective interventions beyond the existing reading recovery program for first graders I urge board members to engage in deeper inquiries regarding the resources and assessments currently utilized in E ma'am you're at three minutes so please wrap up your comments additionally compare that to other districts that consistantly outperform our district thank you for your time my name is Amanda gone I'm also here representing the parents for improved literacy outcomes advocacy group our group consists of dedicated parents many educator parents with expertise across educational disciplines we have consulted with multiple literacy experts within the state of New Jersey as well as a nationally recognized literacy expert as such we are confident that our advocacy efforts are grounded in researched and supported by best evidence-based literacy practices while eim continues to remain committed to balance literacy we are calling for a shift towards structured literacy we urge you to take the time to explore the differen between structured and balanced literacy upon closer review We believe you will find that structured literacy provides a more balanced effective and Equitable approach to teaching reading for all students structured literacy emphasizes direct explicit instruction in all critical components of reading in a carefully sequenced manner with progress which progresses from simple to complex in contrast balanced literacy relies heavily on outdated whole language principles encourages the use of context and guessing strategies to decode words and provides insufficient phonics instruction these methods leave too many students behind particularly those who struggle with reading balanced literacy May effectively meet the needs of approximately 60 to 70% of students primarily those who do not face literacy challenges in contrast structured literacy is considered more effective for 90% or more of students including those with specific literacy difficulties implementing structured literacy from the outset ensures that all students receive a solid foundation in Reading preventing the need for later re remediation of the gaps often left behind by balanced literacy this proactive approach not only optimizes valuable intervention resources but also allows students to develop their literacy skills during the critical period that research has demonstrated the brain is most receptive to acquiring literacy skills in summary structured literacy offers a more Equitable and proven path to reading proficiency for all students the approach is essential for building strong confident readers in our schools we urge the leadership of this District to take action and commit to providing our children comprehensive research and evidence-based structured literacy the time to invest in our children literacy is now good evening I also here tonight on behalf of eim Township School District parents for improved literacy outcomes and I'm here to advocate for the implementation of a structured literacy program across our schools structured literacy is an evidence-based approach that is grounded in the science of reading it focuses on explicit systematic instruction in five critical components of literacy phonemic awareness ponics vocabulary fluency and comprehension this approach is designed to ensure that every student regardless of their background or ability has access to high quality reading instruction structured literacy is not just another reading program it is an approach rooted in decades of research and proven to be highly effective in a structured literacy classroom teachers explicitly teach students how sounds are mapped to letters how words are constructed and how to apply these skills to both reading and writing instruction is systematic starting with foundational skills and gradually moving to more complex Concepts teachers provide ample opportunities for practice reinforcement and review to ensure Mastery of each skill before moving on on this year my first grader in the district came home with a paper stating that the first reading strategy they were taught was to read the pictures we should be providing our youngest students with strategies and skills to read words not pictures as far as your new word study program I've seen three worksheets come home this year pertaining to rhyming Concepts and zero opportunities for those skills to be applied to his reading and writing those skills were never Revisited to ensure Mastery was obtained now more than ever we need to prioritize literacy instruction that is rooted in research the science of reading is gaining traction Nationwide with many states and districts adopting structured literacy programs as the gold standard our students deserve the same opportunity for success and I'm here today to ask for your support in adopting and funding a structured literacy program across our schools this includes providing professional development for our Educators ensuring that teachers are well prepared to implement this research-based approach it also means investing in materials and resources that support structured literacy instruction and providing targeted intervention for struggling readers we are not claiming to be know at alls but we cannot ignore the research when you know better you do better please do better thank you good evening everyone I'm not used to being on this side of the microphone but I just wanted to say hello and thank you for successful year as a school board um I know there's has been ups and downs throughout the community but your dedication volunteer time everything that you do does make a difference and I thank you for all the hours that you spent for our community I also want to thank you for working together with Eve sham Township on many different things so I appreciate that look forward to 2025 and working forward with you on any initiatives that we can make our community better but I also wanted to thank Jam Lee for her service and um especially I want to thank Joe ficaro who will be my new Council mate in January for your many many years of service on the board of education we really appreciate it and I know when I first became mayor we had a good relationship working together as um you were the president of the board at that time and um I look forward to what we're going to accomplish in the future but we have a good relationship here on the board of ed and I really want to thank all of you for all the service that you give to our community would anyone else like to speak seeing none we'll close out open public comment moving to board member announcements are there any board members who would like to make an announcement just a few parting words for me um I wanted to thank all the board members um for everything I know it's been like some hectic months a couple quiet times um throughout my last three years um but it's really been a great joy to see some of the things we've accomplished um seeing full day kindergarten preschool expansion among other things and obviously a lot of hard decisions but it makes it that much better knowing that the people around you care and that's why they're hard decisions because um you know everyone here is dedicated and and trying to do their best so thanks um everyone and Joe congratulations good luck on your next adventure um going from I think one public service to another speaks volumes and um I couldn't imagine being on the board without you and selfishly now I don't have to so um thank you and um just to the public I think to all the parents and community members who write emails and come to these meetings and speak and Advocate I think that's been it was unexpected um when I first joined the board that we would hear so much from parents and get to hear so many um details about their kids' lives and emails and things like that but it's really been a highlight and a privilege and it's helped I know it helps my decision- making and I'm sure it helps others um that's really how we get a pulse on the community of you know how people are feeling about our decisions and I think that's that's really been a privilege to get to hear about all of your lives and your children's lives so thank you and um and that's all for me I just have a couple things I'd like to share with the community um but but first um thank you both um you know Joe has been my teacher in high school since I was probably 14 uh so I've I've been he's been a role model in my life um and I know you're going to do some great things up there so uh represent us proud represent us well and best of luck Jamie um it's been absolute pleasure working with you so thank you very much good luck in your last year law school right yeah one half okay um so good luck to you guys um couple things though that I want to highlight uh for the community um one of the reasons I in a very long story that I'm not going to share one of the reasons that got me involved in any bit of public service was uh an essay contest that was held years and years and years ago um so anytime I see something like that I try to implore parents and students to get involved with it um the third Circuit Court of Appeals which is our local jurisdiction uh is hosting an essay contest about Civics and government and the judicial process and so if you uh as a parent know your your kid might be interested in that or if you as a student is interested in any bit of that um you know it's Justin shared that in his email uh so please try to find out about it you just may never know where something like that will take you you may find yourself um sitting on a board of education one day it's possible um aside from that uh the eim Education Foundation uh they are hosting their Double Down event event which is a big fundraiser they do every dollar they raise goes to support our district that is happening January 31st they do some great work um so you know if you can make it out to that go support them in their mission that would be wonderful uh it's a great event over at the mansion in Vorhees on Main Street um and and it's wonderful so if you could support that please do uh in addition uh some of the great work of our students here in our schools uh were highlighted also in Justin's email um the uh students there hosting fundraisers for the holidays raising uh you know canned goods Toys for Tots all that kind of stuff for kids in need uh Dei Middle School I believe they were uh supporting operation yellow ribbon which goes to support uh military service members serving overseas um during the holidays it's a wonderful organization uh run locally uh beer was supporting the vores animal orphanage so they're doing some great stuff um the only other thing I wanted to mention one last thing and then I'll let myself let run my let my time run out uh but um the uh the state is beginning their process on determining uh State a pretty soon um so we'll be getting information on that next year however they're giving us the opportunity ahead of time to have an input on that on January 14th and 16th the state is having hearings both in Trenton and uh in Camden County at their Emergency Services building where they're going to give the public of any Community the opportunity to go and speak on their community's behalf and that applies directly to state aid funding so you know so much of what our budget is is influenced by is finding out how much money that we're going to get each year from the state um this is my call to action for our public leaders for um you know the community at large parents and and especially students um to to register for one of those hearings and and go uh and offer your peace of mind as far as you know trying to advocate for our community and get as many resources as we can and let them understand what our values are and why it's important that they consider that when the determining how much funding we get every year uh it's the quintessential issue in our state of our time so anything that you could do to provide input on that is greatly appreciated um other than that Merry Christmas happy holidays to everybody and I that is it for my comments thanks Mr Marcy are there any other board members would like to speak I wanted to Bid Farewell to Jamie and Joe I can't believe as I sit here tonight and look there that the two of you won't be here next month you will leave a big hole Jamie I when you you first was elected I didn't know what to expect being were you a sophomore at that time but you really really have done a great job for the students here I know you took your time in learning about all of the issues that came before us and you really put what was best for the students my kids all the kids out there and I'm will be grateful to you forever and best of luck as you finish law school and I am sincere when I say you will be missed here Joe you're not going to be missed I'm only kidding Joe I cannot believe that you're not going to be with us here anymore we've spent seven years together serving on this board with Trish who is here tonight I'm sorry for the shout out and um we've been through a lot together Joe you've always been there to provide me guidance and um you know direction of what would be best for the district bringing all that his history that you had I could always go to you and you would provide sound guidance to me and um we we've been through some very difficult times together as many of us on here have you know in terms of the pandemic I will never forget our days together we spent long nights together and I'm sure I will see you again at Town Council meetings and hopefully we can REM remain friends as you move on to your um you know the next phase of your public service so thank you any other board members wish to speak uh do you want me to go before you so then you can go last yeah I'll go first yeah you can go last you do you yeah all right I'm going to go before um I just want to um there there's one other member of our board that's leaving us that that doesn't sit here at our meetings Diane Snyder is is uh leaving this month um she is the secretary to the board secretary for any office fans out there um I don't think that any of us as board members get anything done without Diane's hard work and I know that John doesn't get anything done without Diane's hard work um from your your first from from as soon as you get elected up until you you leave office here Diane's fingerprints are on quite literally everything we do both as a board and as board members and as a business administration office um and as a transportation department so I just wanted to shout out toan for for all of her years of thank with service um because she doesn't like the spotlight or like to stand here but um at least us as a board we we recognize everything you do Diane I'm I'm privileged to say in the same way that I am with with Jamie and and uh Joe that that you're my friend and I look forward to to where life takes you after this so all right you can go now if any other board member wants to speak Joe's going live last so now's your chance I'm going to jump in oh sure I plan to acknowledge Diane and I feel I'd be remissed if I didn't but um Dian has been with this district for the better part of two decades um and served in a dedicated fashion she's knowledgeable friendly um but she is she's critical to the um efficient functioning of the business office and this board um and she will definitely be missed Ian if you're listening um I will miss you but you know we will remain friends and we all just wish you luck in your next Adventures You're Building me up here and I don't think I have much um honestly this is the most nervous I've been for a meeting in a long time because um I'm used to this process it's a process that I've been a part of and you know I was thinking about I was talking to to Gary um I kind of stepped away from executive session for a moment and uh we had come to the conclusion that a physic Caro has been on a board of education in this town for 37 years uh so our uh our reign of terror is over uh you're free from us now so um I I it was it was a very very weird thing for me and you know I I was thinking about that and I I thought about Jamie and and Aiden and how I've had a soft spot for for both of you because I've understand what you've had to do coming in at such a young age uh I I saw a month left at Stockton when I first came here and uh you know people automatically question you when you're young well what's what's he doing there what is this a is a stepping stone is he trying to do something greater um yeah that took me about 24 years so I'm really bad at Stepping Stones I hope that yours are much quicker than than mine um Jamie I I I thought you won in one of the most incredible ways I thought you dedicated yourself in such an an incredible way because you dedicated to both not just to the community but to your family and to yourself I find that incredibly special uh you have yes have had a quiet demeanor but your intelligence uh is always seeped through and our conversations have always been wonderful and I've always appreciated that and I am I'm grateful that I'm ending my term side by side with you there um I think for a lot of us we do this because we've been through this system we've know someone who's been through this system I mean I I grew up here I I went to VanZant I was in this building for a year I opened up Dei as a seventh grader and you know the the cliche is you want to give back that's always the cliche well there's reality to that you know you know I'm I'm grateful I'm grateful to the teachers that I had I mean it was Mrs to who taught me kindness it was Joe Benedict who taught me how to disarm with humor it was Nancy stalkup who pushed me into theater uh these people they made me who I am and I know that that continues on for other kids I will say that I've always believed that the virtue of a person comes from how you treat other people and you've always treated me with kindness and I hope in some way that I have treated all of you with respect and with love I love this District I I love everyone in it and I'm grateful for all of you so thank you appreciate it motion to adjourn motion by Miss Fox seconded by Mr deari all those in favor see you next year